


Nimble

by skylinesunflowers



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Angst, Gen, Ozai's A+ Parenting, Past Abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-23
Updated: 2020-09-18
Packaged: 2021-03-05 05:28:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,447
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25449127
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skylinesunflowers/pseuds/skylinesunflowers
Summary: Zuko suspects Hakoda of favoring Katara to Sokka, and launches an investigation into his treatment of his son.
Relationships: Iroh & Zuko
Comments: 14
Kudos: 252





	1. The Return

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> “I’m nimble.”
> 
> \- Russell Jackson to Elizabeth McCord

Katara refused to sit by any of them, including Aang, during dinner. Funny, how they’d become a ‘them’ in Zuko’s mind, rather than the ‘Avatar and his friends’.

She fussed over her father, and he caught Sokka doing the same with Suki. Like brother, like sister, he supposed, though it had never been that way for him and Azula.

If Uncle Iroh had been in the lot they rescued, Hakoda, Suki, and Chit Sang, who obviously recognized him, he’d have probably been the same way. Maybe made a cup of tea with whatever he could find. Something like that.

He pushed his bowl of stew away and got up. “I think I’ll turn in early.”

Toph sat beside him, knees drawn up to her chest. At first glance, the girl looked shy, but Zuko knew better. She was only trying to look around.

“Good night, Zuko,” she said, and stared into the fire. He was sure she didn’t mean to, but it reflected her general mood anyway.

Katara and Sokka reflected their father’s general appearance. All three had the same eyes and hair, and a possibly similar face shape. Zuko thought he and Azula looked like Father, too. Azula more so, with her thinner face and sharp eyes. Agni, her _eyes_ …

Shaking it off, he got to his feet and left the general area. Sokka’s girlfriend, or whatever she was to him, watched him curiously. She was pretty, not like Katara or Toph, but simple. Plain, almost.

Suki smiled at him, her blue eyes lighting up. Maybe in another life, he would’ve met a girl like her. Mai, as much as he had loved her, was the opposite of this girl.

He’d lost track of how long they’d spent at the Western Air Temple. Huh, there it was again. Zuko could remember back when ‘they’ consisted of himself, Uncle Iroh, and a few crewmen. Then, just of himself and his uncle.

Not that it was bad. Because it wasn’t. He would give anything for Uncle to be here with him now. Zuko was sure they’d all love him. Everyone seemed to love Uncle Iroh.

He trudged up the stairs into the temple, and down the corridor to his bedroom. Breaking out of the most carefully guarded prison in the Fire Nation was draining, to say the least.

Chit Sang recognized him, obviously. The slight widening of his eyes, and the sharp intake of breath was enough to let him in on that fact. No different than anyone else, but it still made him extremely uncomfortable.

He shut the door behind him and collapsed onto his bed. It was harder than those at home, though better than the ground, and the breath huffed out of him on impact.

Resting his head on his only slightly softer pillow, Zuko stared at the wall. Days of doing this on the ship, trying to control his breathing, had him doing meditative exercises without even realizing. Uncle would be proud.

He should’ve been grateful. For all those years, Uncle was a steady presence, protecting Zuko after Ursa left and Lu Ten was long gone. His loss always hung over them, the both of them and the entire family, but Azula didn’t care. Neither did Ozai, and he was Uncle’s _brother_.

Would Zuko care if, hypothetically, Azula had a child who died in war? He couldn’t be sure. After all, it was Azula. For all he knew, his sister wouldn’t let his niece or nephew anywhere near him.

Still, he remembered Ursa’s grief upon hearing the news of Lu Ten’s passing. Maybe not that moment, not in front of her children, but in the chamber she shared with Father, kneeling on the ground and weeping her eyes out.

He had to admit, it made him uncomfortable seeing Katara so close to Hakoda, while Sokka was hung up on his girlfriend. Suki. Whichever one wasn’t the moon. And, yes, Zuko was aware that the words, “That’s rough, buddy,” weren’t particularly sensitive. He was still working on that.

It reminded him uncomfortably of his childhood, when Azula was doted on by Ozai, and he was left to Ursa, to be consoled when his father decided he wasn’t worth it.

Hakoda had kind eyes. Like he’d noticed before, both his children shared them, though Katara’s were more like ice. Sokka’s were kinder, closer to his father’s. Maybe it was just Zuko who made Katara’s eyes go cold.

Ozai, on the other hand, didn’t. And, in his experience, people with kind eyes were kind. Like Uncle. Unlike Father. Chief Hakoda must just have simply been closer to Katara. Or maybe he’d taken the time to bond with his son behind doors.

A cold feeling sank to the pit of Zuko’s stomach. What if he didn’t? Ozai had kept up the act until the fateful Agni Kai - Zuko closed his eyes against the memories. His breath went shaky, and he pushed more than one horrifying visual out of his mind.

It would be better just to check. Just in case Sokka was in any danger. He wouldn’t be, Zuko was sure. Almost sure. Fine, not very sure at all. That’s why he was checking.

He wouldn’t do any harm to Sokka, who seemed to be a newfound friend, by checking. Maybe he could even enlist Suki, who seemed to be kind. She was so straightforward, just like Toph. Well, maybe in a softer way than Toph.

Unless Hakoda found out. He was sure the violence would grow if he caught wind of Zuko’s investigation. Hypothetical violence. It was official, then. Exiled Prince Zuko had become a conspiracy theorist.

But checking, he told himself, would do nobody any harm. And the Kyoshi Warriors were trained in the art of inconspicuity. It wasn’t as if he’d let Hakoda catch on. Or Sokka, for that matter.

Stretching his arms out behind his head, Zuko lay back. It was a plan, then. Enlist Suki and get to finding evidence. Hopefully, there’d be nothing, and Sokka would be fine.

Hopefully, it wouldn’t end the way it had for Zuko.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have way too many irrelevant thoughts to fit into the two author’s notes on this chapter.


	2. The Investigation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ha, ha, ha, maybe if I laugh, you guys won't realize how crappy my excuse is for not writing.

Zuko approached Suki first thing next morning. She had her hair in that half-up half-down style, a similar, lax version of the Fire Nation’s own.

Smiling, she waved at him, and tugged on the edge of her shirt, the mark of a criminal. Not that she was. She’d only lost her village. Only. Zuko winced. Not the right terminology.

“Zuko,” she said, and there was a chilly undertone to her voice.

He swallowed before answering, “Hey, Suki. So, I was wondering if I could talk to you.”

Suki narrowed her eyes, and he wondered how someone could seem so kind, yet be so cold, at the same time. Well, it wasn’t as if Zuko could blame her. Or Katara.

He took her to a quiet corner, and she managed a half-smile. “So, what do you want to talk about?”

“Chief Hakoda, Sokka and Katara’s dad. Oh, I nearly - you can’t tell anyone about this.”

“About _what_?”

“Swear it, and then I’ll tell you.”

Suki huffed an aggravated sigh. “Fine. _I swear it._ _Now_ will you tell me?”

“I’m worried about Sokka.”

Her face betrayed no emotion, but the way her breath hitched in her throat clued Zuko in to her real emotions. “Why should I believe you? Are you threatening him?”

“What? No! I’m worried about him and Hakoda. His dad seems to favor Katara.”

Suki rolled her eyes. “Come on. Really? Hakoda doesn’t favor Katara. He loves both his kids. No parent has a favorite.”

Zuko snorted. “Yeah, all right.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

He winced. “Nothing. Sorry, Suki. Guess you’re right.”

She watched after him suspiciously as he left, shoulders slumped. He couldn’t believe that she, a Kyoshi warrior who was, at least, a little bit nice to him, couldn’t believe this. It wasn’t necessarily _hidden_.

Running a hand through his hair, he thought through the scenarios. If Hakoda was hurting Sokka, there wasn’t a high chance he’d do it here, when they were all in such close quarters. By the river, that was a different story.

He could stake out the river. And he could spar with Hakoda, if that was something he did. Fa - Ozai wasn’t very hands-on in that sense, but the Water Tribe types could be. According to the Fire Nation history books, anyway.

He heard loud, sharp footsteps, and flinched slightly when Toph’s hand rested on his back. “Hey, Sparky. Did I scare you?”

“N - no, Toph. Where are you going?”

She grinned. “I’m going down to the river to spar with Katara. Water versus earth. Haven’t seen a showdown like that in a while. Since I was born, actually.”

Zuko wasn’t sure whether or not to laugh. If it had been a joke, it would be rude not to. On the other hand, if it was a simple statement, it would just be plain impolite to do so.

“You can laugh,” she encouraged, before muttering, “Geez, Sparky. Tough crowd, much?”

“Sorry,” he offered. “I’ll come with you and - and watch.”

“Sure you can.” Toph took him by the arm and practically dragged him out. “You can hang out with Hakoda and Sokka. I think they’ve got bets on who’s going to win.”

He let her lead him to the river, her arm looped around his, without complaint. After all, who was he to disrupt a battle which she wanted him to watch. And Zuko could gain some knowledge into Hakoda and Sokka’s relationship.

Zuko kept a sharp eye on Hakoda's hands. Without waterbending, which he knew left a scar, it was a bit easier to tell what was going on.

And, then, he turned to look at Toph, who demanded his attention in identifying a plant she was touching, and Sokka let out a cry of pain.

At once, Zuko lashed out. Flames burst from his arm, and Hakoda only avoided them by a millimetre. Agni, he'd missed! What was Sokka to do now, once his father regained his bearings and began raging at him?

The only person not staring aghast at Zuko was Toph, and even her face, turned away from him, seemed pretty shocked. Katara's expression was one frozen in mistrust, and something cooler than her glare froze around his wrists. He looked down, barely noticing how hard he was shaking. Ice, probably from the river. Wouldn't it melt? He wasn't about to ask.

"Zuko? What ... " Sokka was speechless. "Why did you do that?"

"I'm sorry," he said, surprised at how breathless his voice went. "I thought he was going to hurt you. I thought - I thought ... " He stuttered himself into silence.

Toph got up and went over to Katara. He could hear her mumbling something to her, and when he looked up, she guided Toph to the riverbank and got into position to raise water. They had a match, right.

Disoriented, Zuko looked around wildly. Why was she leaving? Why hadn't anybody sent for Aang yet, or claimed that he was a Fire Nation spy? What was wrong with them?

"Spirits, Zuko," Sokka said, and got up from the battlefield. "We need to talk. Let's head back to camp."

Zuko's mind was spinning so hard when he got up, he was worried for his sanity.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't worry, Zuko. I'm dizzy too, from all the sharp turns this plot took.


	3. The Resolution

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m not 100% happy with this ending, but your girl, Blue, needs to woman up and finish this.

Sokka led Zuko by the arm, down the hallway he and Katara frequented, into his bedroom. It wasn’t nearly as bare as Zuko’s. He had a picture of a boy Zuko took to be him, a young girl with Katara’s hair, a less lined Hakoda, and a pretty woman who could only be his mother. A sword hung on the wall, and there was a boomerang beside it.

”What was that?” he asked in a voice which reached for gentility.

“There’s no chance we could forget about that, is there?” Zuko’s voice caught awkwardly in his throat.

“Zuko. You shot fire at my dad and then said you thought he was going to hurt you.” Sokka’s blue eyes were wide with sympathy. “We’re going to talk about this.”

“Nothing to talk about. I thought wrong.” Best to adopt this position now, he guessed. “Big deal.”

“Big deal, because there’s no way any normal person could think that my dad would hurt me! Please, just talk to me. What’s wrong?”

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Zuko grit out. Who did Sokka think he was, Uncle Iroh? _Uncle, I’m sorry, I’m so, so sorry I ever betrayed you …_

“Please.” Sokka took Zuko’s cool hands into his own. His palms were sweaty, and Zuko grimaced slightly.

“My fa - _Ozai_ did some things that I’d prefer not to talk about,” he said rather stiffly. “If that’s all, I’ll be heading back now.”

“No!” Sokka cried, looking close to ripping out his ponytail. “You don’t get to be all angsty and closed off about this! We’re the Aang Gang. We have your back, Zuko. I need you to tell me: Did he hit you?”

“Yes,” Zuko choked out. _Yes, and no._ Did burning your kid’s face count as hitting them? God, how fucked up was that?

“Tui and La.” Sokka laughed harshly. “Shouldn’t have said that.”

“The moon girlfriend,” he recalled numbly, floored by his own acceptance of Ozai’s violence.

“I thought we hated him.” Sokka pulled his hands out of Zuko’s. “Hate’s not a strong enough word for how much I _loathe_ that man.”

Zuko felt his lips tremble slightly. He didn’t say anything, not wanting to interrupt Sokka’s speech.

“I’ll kill him myself if I have to.” He was nearly snarling now. “But Fire Lord Ozai will _never_ walk free.”

“B - but, Sokka,” Zuko protested weakly. So, so damn week, always. Agni, he didn’t want to be so weak.

“No ‘but Sokka’. I’m going to kill him, and that’s final. And if I can’t, I’ll have Aang do it.”

“No,” Zuko said vehemently. “You won’t tell Aang anything. This stays between us; do you understand me?”

Sokka was panting from the force of his anger. “But, I - Zuko, how … I can’t … damn.” His shoulders slumped. “Fine, then. I’ll tell them we talked. I’ll tell Aang that the world will be better if he kills Ozai.”

“Thank you, Sokka,” he said quietly, unable to meet the Water Tribe boy’s eyes.

“Dad would never hurt any one of us,” Sokka said without looking at him. “You don’t have to worry about anyone.”

“Okay.” His voice was still hushed, possibly because of the weight that had been lifted off him. “Can I - ahem. I’m leaving, now.”

“Thanks, Zuko,” Sokka said. His eyes softened. “I mean it.”

“Bye, buddy,” Zuko said, and listened to the door click behind him as he left.


End file.
